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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. content — happy
  3. spell — letters
  4. spell — magic
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. spell — a short time
  12. wake — a trail
  13. tear — to rip
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. content — the amount
  16. pitch — completely
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. wake — before a funeral

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com